Process for making wooden floor panels



M. A. JEANTELOT PROCESS FOR MAKING WOODEN FLOOR PANELS July 22, 1958Filed June -15, 1956 United States Patent PROCESS FOR MAKING WOODENFLOOR PANELS Maurice Aristide Jeantelot, Landreville, France ApplicationJune 15, 1956, Serial No. 591,722 3 Claims. (Cl. 20--6) The presentinvention relates generally to the treatment of the elements of woodenor wood-containing floors, floorings or like coverings as used in thebuilding trade, particularly those adapted to be laid on a cement baseor bed.

The laying of a floor made up of wooden laths or elements on a cementbase involves difficulties which have not been satisfactorily obviatedhitherto, the result often being an undue impregnation of the woodenelements by the wet cement and the formation of stains or blobs whichshow on the floor and mar its appearance. Moreover the intrinsic wetnessof cement causes the wood to swell and may interfere with the propersetting of cement.

Such reactions of wood in the natural state present among otherdisadvantages in techniques of prefabrication the impossibility ofincorporating wooden elements with cast slabs used for building floors.All attempts made heretofore for binding a wooden floor to a cement baseby a casting process in a fashion similar to the laying of a fiagstonepavement or to the erection of metal door frames or metal window sasheshave so far given bad results because wood in the raw state cannot bebound to cement and also because of the stains which show on the floorand of the swell of wood as it is incorporated with a milk of cement.Wood in the raw state cannot Withstand kiln treatment or drying cowltreatment as usually used for accelerating desiccation of prefabricatedslabs and setting of cement.

An object of the invention is to obviate the aforesaid disadvantages ofusual floorings and ground coverings while producing an improvedflooring or covering made of wood or having a stabilized wooden basewhich is altogether unstainable by the cement during the layingoperation, protected from moistening as known floors and sufiicientlystable for being incorporatable with cast slabs in the art ofprefabricating floor elements or panels.

According to the invention, there is provided a process comprising thesteps of stabilizing wood after the formation of pro-assembled panels orelements adapted to be laid in position by immersing wood elements in abath having a petroleum derivative or equivalent product base at atemperature higher than 120 C. for initiating a distillation processcausing crystallization of the wood fibres while maintaining the stateof immersion during a suificient period for ensuring properstabilization of wood fibres.

The liquid forming the base of the immersion bath may be a petroleumderivative such as those known as gas oil, fuel oil or the like, alsogasoline.

According to a feature of the invention, there is advantageously admixedto the treatment bath an oily substance having for its purpose toprevent the wood or he covering'material containing wood fibres frombecoming cracked or fissured. Use may be made to that effect of suitablecommercial oils. The proportion of oil which must be added to thetreatment bath having a 2,843,885 Patented July 22, 1958 ice petroleumderivative base will be determined to suit operative conditions, thenature of the wood to be treated, the particular petroleum derivative asused and like factors. Such proportion should not be such as might leaveoily blobs on the elements of which the flooring or covering will bemade up.

According to another feature of the invention, the treatment bath maycontain a substance capable of doing away with the dangers arising fromthe manipulation of the aforesaid mixture, for example perchloroethylenein suitable quantity.

The temperature of the heat treatment involving an immersion of thematerial in the treatment bath is advantageously comprised in a rangeextending from 120 C. to 150 C. Such temperature is slightly higher thanthe temperature at which wood generally distils and which generallystarts at 120 C. The distillation start thus carried out ensuresstabilization of the wood fibres.

The duration of the immersion corresponding to the treatment may varyfor example from three to ten minutes although immersion periods outsidesaid limits may also give satisfactory results depending upon practicaloperative conditions, the exact nature of the mixture that forms theliquid bath and the character of wood subjected to the treatment. Woodelements or panels, which may or may not be preliminarily assembledtreated as above described may be stored for a period which ought notpreferably exceed eight days, whereafter they may be laid on thesubjacent base or bed thereby forming a flooring or covering devoid ofthe disadvantages of known coverings.

The process according to the invention is particularly applicable tocomposite wood panels adapted to form parquet-like floorings and made upof laths or battens interconnected by clips of corrugated or undulatedshape clinched into the adjacent portions of neighboring laths andprojecting from one face of the panel for permitting grouting or sealingto the cement base or bed, said undulated clips being preferablyarranged in such a slanting position as will permit the wood to be:stabilized while allowing the same to become warped to a certain extent.In such a case, the several clips are preferably disposed in overlappingrelation over a short distance.

Laths or battens having any desired length may be assembled by means ofseveral parallel rows of clips set or clinched as above described. Suchassembly by clips is sutficient particularly when dealing with woodhaving heterogeneous pores. When dealing with soft. or tender wood orwood having homogeneous pores, the panels may be reinforced orstrengthened, prior to immersion, by means of suitably shaped angleplates or strips attached to the opposite edges, of the panels andpreferably provided with sealing lugs or studs which increase thesteadiness of the floor on the .cement base.

The invention includes the panels obtained by assembling laths orbattens interconnected by clip of undulated shape set or clinched intothe adjacent portions of neighboring laths and projecting from one faceof the panel for permitting them to be sealed to the cement base andcharacterized by having undergone a heat stabilization treatment byhaving been immersed into a bath having a petroleum derivative basemaintained at a sufiicient temperature for causing a distillation startof the wood stock.

For a better understanding of the invention, reference will now be madeto the accompanying drawing in which is shown by way of illustrative butnon-limitative example a suitable embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 1 is an under plan view of a panel for composite flooring obtainedby the process according to the invennon.

Fig. 2 is an edge view corresponding to Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an end view showing how the marginal portions of the panelsare held down in the cement base or bed.

The flooring panel as shown on the drawing is prepared by unitingtogether wooden laths l by means of inclined clips 2 of undulatedoutline which are set or clinched into the adjacent portions ofneighboring laths as clearly visible in Fig. 1 and are so arranged inrows that two adjacent clips 2 slightly overlap. The clips 2 occupy aslanting position for facilitating proper hold while permitting thewoodenlaths to become warped to a certain extent during the heattreatment as described hereafter. The clips 2 project from the lowerface of the panel as shown in Fig. 2, the projecting portion of theclips being utilized for sealing them into the cement base so asadequately to hold down the panel on it.

Each extreme edge of the panel has fixed thereto an angle member 3 thecross sectional shape of which is clearly visible on Fig. 2. Such anglemember is provided with an inwardly bent wing 4 set or clinched into theend face of the panel. Such wing 4 may have a straight or serrated edgefor increasing mechanical resistance, and it checks any relativedisplacement between the end portions of the laths 1. The body portionof the angle member 3 encompasses an edge of the panel as illustratedand terminates in sealing lugs 5 obtained by stamping or otherwise. Suchsealing lugs 5 are adapted to be imbedded in the cement base 6 as shownin Fig. 3.

After the laths of which the flooring panel is to be made up have beenassembled, the panel is immersed for a period ranging from three to tenminutes in a heat stabilization bath comprising a mixture of gas oil,commercial oil and perchloroethylene maintained at a temperaturecomprised between 120 C. and 150 C. This causes a distillation start ofthe thus treated wood stock while stabilizing the same. The panel isthen withdrawn from the treatment bath and stored for a few days beforebeing laid upon the cement base such as 6.

The distillation start of the wood stock as achieved during theabove-described treatment does away with any regaining of moistness asthe laths are laid upon a cement base, also with any stains or blobs onthe panel once it has been laid in position. The panel may resist fairlyheavy loads and its appearance is not modified at all by moist heat. Theclips 2 and the sealing lugs 5 which may be provided at its end permit avery satisfactory laying of the panels on the cement base to beobtained. 7

Minor details of the process may be varied without departing from theambit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A process for manufacturing wooden fabricated elements for floors,floorings or like coverings, comprising the steps of interconnectingwooden laths into panel form, driving clips of undulated outline intothe adja cent portions of the neighboring laths, while arranging I from120 to 150 C., for starting distillation of the wood, and maintainingsaid immersion for a time ranging from three to ten minutes.

2. A process for manufacturing wooden fabricated elements for floors,floorings or like coverings, comprising the steps of interconnectingwooden laths into panel form, driving clips of undulated outline intothe adjacent portions of the neighboring laths, while arranging saidclips in such a slanting position as to cause them to overlap oneanother over a slight distance, for retaining said laths to said panelform, said clips projecting from said panel for permitting sealing intoa cement base, fitting upon the end portions of the panel angle membersprovided with sealing lugs for increasing the stability of the panel onthe cement base, immersing the resultant panel into a liquid bathcontaining a petroleum derivative selected from the group comprising gasoil and fuel oil, at a temperature ranging from to C., for causing adistillation start of the wood, and maintaining said immersion for atime ranging from three to ten minutes.

3. A process for manufacturing wooden fabricated elements for floors,fioorings or like coverings, comprising the steps of interconnectingwooden laths into panel form, driving clips of undulated outline intothe adjacent portions of the neighboring laths, While arranging saidclips in such a slanting position as to cause them to overlap oneanother over a slight distance, for retaining said laths to panel form,said clips projecting from said panel for permitting sealing into acement base, fitting upon the end portions of the panel angle membersprovided with sealing lugs, for increasing the stability of the panel onthe cement base, immersing the resultant panel into a liquid bathcontaining a petroleum derivative selected from the group comprising gasoil and fuel oil, an additional commercial oil and perchloroethylene, ata temperature ranging from 120 to 150 C., for causing a distillationstart of the wood, and maintaining said immersion for a time rangingfrom three to ten minutes.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,464,044 Marr Aug. 7, 1923 2,296,316 Stamm Sept. 22, 1942 2,464,429Barksdale Mar. 15, 1949 2,482,405 Edlund Sept. 20, 1949 2,538,457 HudsonJan. 16, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 470,558 Great Britain Aug. 17, 1937

